William Van De Poorter
William van de Poorter (now known simply as "Willy") was one of the Thongzi's finest special agents. Although not as committed to the cause he did believe in a certain work ethic. When the Thongzi disbanded in the wake of the Battle of New York in 2277 he left the faction. Years later he would suffer from severe brain damage after a raider attack. He underwent a personality change as a result. Biography Early Life William was born in a small settlement that had formed in the ruins of Chinatown in New York City. Both his parents were of American-Dutch ancestry and Vault Dwellers that had left the Vault in search of a new life. In Chinatown he grew up like any ordinary kid until the Thongzi arrived when he was five years old. The faction easily overran the weak defenses of the small town which included William's father. The man died of his wounds. Or so the official Thongzi report stated. Now under their dominion and rule, Chinatown was reforged under the doctrine of Mother Chao-Xing; The leader of the Thongzi. Which in the eyes of the young boy didn't change much at first. At the age of six he had to go to the People's Republic of Chinatown school ran by the new regime, like all the other kids. His mother meanwhile, had taken to drinking her problems away, giving the young boy the idea she didn't exactly love him all that much. At the age of twelve William was bullied by other kids at school for being rather quiet and introverted, he preferred to escape in his own fantasy world with toys he found just about anywhere in the ruins. William was also a rather skinny kid that didn't eat much, because his mother couldn't provide a lot. In the early spring of 2257, William was playing with a red toy race-car he had found in an old shop when one of the bullies, Gregory, showed up and smashed it. They had never really smashed his toys before, just knocked him about, so this was the moment William snapped. While they were laughing at how pathetically attached he was to two hundred year old plastic, William picked up a rock in his new found rage and hit Gregory over the head with it, killing the boy. Whilst uncertain and confused by what had just transpired William was approached by Mother Chao-Xing whom had seen the whole ordeal. She encouraged the boy, seeing his potential. After that William was under the special wing of the leader of the Thongzi. Throughout his teenage years the boy was trained in Eastern Martial Arts and got all his lessons, directly from Chao-Xing. A woman he never really considered as his mother, but a better substitute than the wreck he had left. This meant somewhat ironically he was less brainwashed and given more room to think freely than those in the Thongzi school. Growing up with little to no affection, Van de Poorter became a rather cynical person that did what he did because it was the only thing he was good at. Thongzi Like everyone else, after graduation he was put in an old Red Chinese uniform they seemed to have plenty off and into the fold of the Thongzi military. Firstly as an officer, through a handy bit of nepotism by Chao-Xing. She never showed it, but she had grown attached to the boy in some way. As a result she didn't want him dying out there in the wastes immediately. So, William became an officer of the newly formed Intelligence service of the Thongzi. A fancy word and designation for the scouts that combed the ruins for supplies and a possible Brotherhood threat. Under William the Intelligence service got more streamlined and generally better, eventually creating infiltrators that could keep an eye on the other settlements in the area. It appeared Van de Poorter was a natural when it came to Tradecraft. Despite the improvements the service was still undermanned and a somewhat vestigial part of the Thongzi arsenal, Considering they usually just tried to take settlements with head-on violence. The Brotherhood Of Steel Conflict Meddling as always, the Brotherhood of Steel based in the Fort Washington, in the Hudson Heights of Manhattan launched several attacks on the Thongzi, seeing them as a threat to the Empire Wasteland and their order. The Brotherhood was far better equipped and almost every conflict resulted in BoS victory. Mother Chao-Xing was desperate. A string of defeats never was good for morale, especially not in a military dictatorship. Desperate and out of options she decided that stealth was the best course of action and gave William's secret service a chance to prove themselves able. William, despite his generally young age was an expert when it came to sheer cunning. He gave false information to the enemy and would then when they least expected it, strike from behind, causing massive damage to the Brotherhood. Eventually after months of these deceitful battles, the Brotherhood had to give up their southward campaign towards conquering the People's Republic of Chinatown. Instead, they decided on a perimeter they would guard from Thongzi expansion, rather than an offensive strike to take the faction out for good. William was praised for his actions by Chao-Xing. Despite their expansion now being abruptly halted, they had firm control of the South side. This Stalemate would be held until the Thongzi disbanded in 2277. Top Agent In the year 2277 the Thongzi had developed advances in the field of Psychotronic conditioning, read: direct brainwashing and idea implanting. The faction, while still militaristic in nature now had regular citizens which it kept in line with this technique. It managed to power these experiments with make-shift generators that provided power for the entire People's Republic, turning it into just more than a weird tribe with pre-war weaponry. Despite this, trading caravans absolutely avoided the South side or Chinatown. The Thongzi had arbitrarily decided they were above the "capitalist trading and barter system that had clung to the United States like a disease", and usually would rob these traders of all their stuff. This naturally caused them to have few allies and were thus in the years prior to 2277 cut off from most cultural advances of the north. In all of this, William was now a field agent of the secret service. Serving as Mother's adviser and personal guard on the side. The reason he was an adviser was because he was one of the very few people in the Thongzi that would dare (or could) speak his mind against Chao-Xing. When it came to troubleshooting over an idea, slimy brainwashed yes-men wouldn't do. It was through this close relationship with the leader that William was let in on the big plan she had been working on ever since their expansion was stopped by the Brotherhood of Steel. The Thongzi had created their own radio station, which first and foremost served as a way to send their propaganda into the wasteland to recruit 'willing' wastelanders, but it also had a darker more insidious purpose: Testing pyschotronic comparability with radio waves: Wireless long-range brainwashing, where they didn't need to strap the subject into a chair and poke around his brain that way. A bold experiment indeed but for it to succeed the Thongzi would need special and rare supplies. Hence they partook in under-board purchasing of products through a third party. Through William's Spy network contact could be established with the de-facto leader of Broadway: Ania Ray. A rich, bored sociopath that Mother would use to buy technology off of the infamous technologically superior clinic on Governors Island in the bay. Governors Island was however simply a front for the Enclave led by General Governor, whom posed as the Clinic's head doctor. William would meet and negotiate with both Ania Ray and Governor, to eventually get every part needed to built the transmitter necessary for brainwashing the entire Empire Wasteland. Fallout: New York Calm Before The Storm In the fall of 2277, William managed to get the final parts to build the Psychotronic transmitter. A large tower that would be built atop of the Empire State Building. Piece by piece hauled up by Thongzi men under the veil of night. The Empire State building was far into Brotherhood controlled land so if they were caught the entire operation would be bust. William would make trips too and from Governors Island and Timesquare & Broadway, overlooking every detail of the plan. Meanwhile the Thongzi scientists in the PRCT had discovered that the transmitter had been tampered with, a plan by the posing as Governors Clinic Enclave to instead use the psychotronic waves to kill every impure and irradiated being in the Empire Wasteland. Armed with this knowledge William advised Mother Chao-Xing to let them play it out as to not give the Clinic suspicions they knew of the double-cross before they had all the parts necessary to build the transmitter. The last order was made by Ania Ray the following night. Now that she was useless to the Thongzi, William received the order to test the new technology at Ania Ray's Lounge. At the same time it would serve as a way to cover their tracks because another party had started interfering with their plans. A band of wandering factionless wastelanders had nearly destroyed part of the operation. One of them, Thomas Hamilton had been captured prior when he was skulking around the South side, back then they didn't even know he was part of the gang. Unfortunately for them, he escaped and was even in the Lounge when William tested the psychotronic wave device. The test was a success however. Now he just had to get the last part from Governors Clinic have it reworked and bring it to the transmitter on top of the Empire State Building and they would rule the wasteland. Battle for New York William collected the last piece of the transmitter from Governors Island, this time hand delivered to him by Doctor Governor himself. Little did he know that the wastelanders that has been meddling with their plans were also on the island, however his stay wasn't very long. And with the transformer needed to activate the contraption on top of the tallest building still standing in the wasteland, he headed home. Thomas Hamilton was however once again caught. The wastelander from DC had been put in a punching bag on which William was allowed to train for a few hours. Now, virtually crippled and his resistance as low as it was going to get, Hamilton was strapped into the conventional psychotronic brainwashing device and turned into a Thongzi foot soldier. William would use this new member to the faction as a meat shield against the Enclave that had dropped their disguise and with the help of their vertibirds, occupied Grand Central Station close to the Empire State Building. Armed with the transformer and Hamilton, William was once again ordered by Mother Chao-Xing to bring glory to the Thongzi. Their trek towards the tower was however shortly halted by a radioactive storm that ran through the Empire Wasteland, so both him and Hamilton had to take shelter in a nearby house. He hadn't really told anyone, but ever since the start of the year. William van de Poorter had been having doubts. His extended time with the Thongzi had turned him incredibly cynical and by the end of fall, he was just doing what he did because it was the only thing he knew how to do. In that brief moment of quietude where he was holed up with Hamilton who was obviously fighting his way back into his mind, showed William that some people just could not be controlled. He admired the man's individuality. A concept that had been robbed from him a long time ago. But something he had always wished to know more of, despite every attempt of Mother to make him look the other way. When the storm was over William sighed and promptly sent Hamilton to his supposed death, as a last middle finger against the Enclave. Hamilton would serve as a reminder to the stooges in central station that William van de Poorter and to some extend, The Thongzi, were not to be fucked with. Whilst Hamilton would be sent to die alone against the Enclave, William climbed the Empire State Building, to finally finish all of this. Thomas Hamilton however managed to escape death, even though he had served the purpose of tipping off the Enclave that they were being had. Governor quickly ordered a vertibird with himself on it to make for the top of the tower, hoping to catch up with the Thongzi and stop them before it was too late. Meanwhile Rook, Morgan, Heather, Gary and Naomi raced to the top of the tower as well to stop all factions from killing or enslaving thousands. This included Hamilton who wanted revenge more than anything. A battle broke out on top of the Empire State building, where Governor was killed, and William confronted by Hamilton and Rook. He did not try to kill them though. Instead, for the first time in his entire life he elected to screw his professional attitude and decided to give the transformer to the Wastelanders, so they would be given the choice what to do with it instead. He would never return to the Thongzi, and simply left the Empire Wasteland, in search of himself, the individual. Fallout: Second City Arriving in the Midwest (more to be added) Life as a private investigator, working oddjobs (more to be added) Fallout: Prophecy Journey to the West Coast After having made one enemy too many in Second City William decided to leave town before he got killed. He had heard of a city out west called New Vegas, hedonistic pleasure paradise in the warm Mojave sun. A far cry from the frigid towers of Second City and just the way the aging former agent wanted to spend the remainder of his days. At this point thoroughly disillusioned with life after having discovered that life without Thongzi homogeneity was just as meaningless to him as when he lived in the militaristic commune, he had decided a vapid den of booze, sex and gambling might not have been so bad. The only problem was that the shortest road, which was still hundreds of miles long and ran through incredibly dangerous wastelands controlled by warring tribes and a faction of slavers called: 'Ceasar's Legion'. The safest but slightly longer way would be to head due west from Second City, through what had once been known as 'the dakotas' until he found the coast and then head south until he reached the New California Republic from which heading to New Vegas would be a cakewalk along the trade routes from the Boneyard. The Journey proved quite uneventful, in as far as traversing a hostile land was uneventful until he reached the Royal Wasteland... Kheiro and the Prophecy (more to be added) Memory loss and brain damage Not long after he had left the Royal Wasteland behind him, while he was heading south towards Astoria - He happened upon a wanderer named Suzy who appeared to be lost and in need of directions. After she asked nice, William eventually decided to help her, lowering his guard to look at her map, upon which Suzy revealed herself to be a raider and attacked William in order to rob him while he was distracted by her ruse. A deep cut with a butterfly knife in Will's neck slashed the artery and caused the former agent to lose blood profusely. Even after he had managed to dispatch of the assailant he collapsed and bled out, ultimately causing cerebral hypoxia resulting in coma and severe brain damage. He was found and aided by a couple of local farmers named Kyle and Joan who upon realizing that he was still alive took William back to their ranch. What happened to 'Suzy' isn't exactly clear. For weeks William would phase in and out of consciousness in which his deterioration became more and more apparent. He would mumble a few words and then return into his deep sleep for weeks. When he finally came to he could not remember who he was, or anything that had happened to him prior to his comatose state. Kyle and Joan faced with the issue of a nameless stranger staying in their bed asked if perhaps he would mind if they called him Willy. A name he had uttered once or twice in his throws. Willy gladly accepted his name. Having become a complete amnesiac, Willy not only suffered mental loss but reduced cognitive ability and altered personality. His brain chemistry had changed itself in the recovery. Mental acuity and intelligence had gone down significantly turning the once lethal Thongzi agent into a slightly dimwitted middle-aged man who had difficulty performing some of the most basic arithmetic and comprehensive reading. A blank canvas on which Kyle and Joan took pity. Over time Willy's ability to move and talk improved at least. Eventually he managed to get out of bed and eat on his own and ultimately he could be entrusted with simple chores which he loved doing. The naive and impressionable Willy took on his carer's attitude towards life: Kind-hearted and hard-working. He developed a love for nature and animals in particular and abhorred violence. Which the sheltered farm in Oregon experienced little of. Besides his love for animals Willy discovered the joys of food, of which Joan was more than happy to provide enough. It didn't take long before Willy lost his lean physique and gained a gut and a layer of fat to his face that would be hard to sweat off in a few weeks. Eventually Willy became the farmhand of the ranch and while occasionally plagued by deep repressed memories, was happy to live out his life here in peace, having forgotten about New York, Second City, all the people he had met, and all the things he had done... And perhaps that was for the best. The Legends of the Wastes A''' '''call to arms? Having lived peacefully and content on the farm of the couple that saved him from death for three years now, Willy was sought out by the enigmatic Mr. Miller. An agent from a top secret NCR government department that had been monitoring several potential assets for a rag tag coalition of professionals that could take down potential threats. Threats such as the mass-murderer Shrike who fate had made nearly indestructible. Personality Originally a cold and calculating sociopath, now a kind-hearted and well-meaning simpleton William has proven himself to be a complex character. Even before he was an assassin for the Thongzi he had an individualistic streak, wishing to be left alone most of the time. Perhaps that live and let live attitude has been the only constant in his life, all the way from when he was bullied up to him living on the farm. A shame then that destiny had other plans for him. Appearances * [http://ccfalloutroleplaying.wikia.com/wiki/Thread:9825 Fallout: New York V] * [http://ccfalloutroleplaying.wikia.com/wiki/Thread:10969 Fallout: New York VII] * [http://ccfalloutroleplaying.wikia.com/wiki/Thread:13259 Fallout: New York XI] * [http://ccfalloutroleplaying.wikia.com/wiki/Thread:14399 Fallout: New York XIII] * [http://ccfalloutroleplaying.wikia.com/wiki/Thread:15115 Fallout: New York XIV] * Fallout: New York XV * [http://fallout-gravel-pit.wikia.com/wiki/Thread:16528 Fallout: Prophecy (Part 1)] * Fallout: Prophecy (Part 2) * Fallout: Prophecy (Part 3) * Fallout: Prophecy (Part 4) * Fallout: Prophecy (Part 5) * Fallout: Prophecy (Part 6) * Fallout: Prophecy (Part 7) * The Legends of the Wastes (Part 1) * The Legends of the Wastes (Part 2) * The Legends of the Wastes (Part 3) * The Legends of the Wastes (Part 4) Trivia * Van de Poorter is a bogus Dutch-Flemish surname, literally meaning "Of The Gatekeeper". But very few if any people actually have this surname. Usually it's something similar like 'De Poorter' or 'Vanderpoort'. * William still has a nasty scar above his left eye, courtesy of Thomas Hamilton. * His appearance is slightly based on the platinum haired and freckled face of the Dutch "Beemster Cheese" 1950's child mascot. Only a lot rougher. * For the majority of Fallout: New York's RP he was simply known as "Thongzi agent" or "Agent of the People's Republic of Chinatown" and had no backstory. * William's character is semi-inspired by The Manchurian Candidate, A 1950's political espionage thriller by Richard Condon. Where an American man becomes a pawn of Red Chinese Agents through brainwashing. Category:Characters Category:Males Category:Fallout: New York Category:Humans Category:Fallout: Second City Category:Fallout: Prophecy Category:Legends of the Wastes